This match begins like the rest of their matches, with Inoki dressed like a class act. He looks like wrestling royalty with his robe, his handsome features and his overall appearance which makes him look like a graceful wrestler. He takes good care of himself clearly... then there's Stan Hansen. Fat, dressed like a cowboy, carrying a bull rope and looks like he's showed up to get into a pig sty and ready to skin for bacon. And as always, his facial hair deserves a Hall of Fame place. 2 polar opposites, yet great in their own right. Inoki is here to wrestle, Hansen is here to fight, and for the fans - it has showdown written all over it.
The match starts off with an exchange of holds followed by a battle on the mat. Inoki looks the more finessed, natural wrestler but Hansen is one of the best ever on the mat himself, he just doesn't look pretty while he's doing it and it's not long before he's throwing knees against Inoki's skull and stomping. But Inoki is a tough little bugger. He can take it.
One of the great things about Hansen is his use of ring psychology, and when he's not getting things his way he has no problem getting the fuck out of there, heating up the crowd and disrupting the flow of the match. Just when Inoki is starting to look in control Hansen is out and in repeatedly and the chants start for Inoki. Once again we're treated to some great submission wrestling by Inoki and some ''I'll punch you on the fucking head to break your submission'' wrestling by Hansen.
Hansen is always trying to dictate the pace and style of the match, but Inoki manages a response to the aggressive Hansen throughout, he even dominates for spells of the match, but with these 2 no one ever really truly dominates because they have response to everything each other does. They don't even counter each others moves, they just find ways to hurt each other at the same time and then before you know the pace has changed again and a brawl ensues before reverting back to slow paced hold for hold wrestling. It's the the fucking strawberry yoghurt. I loved it. We even get some great high flying from Inoki, and considering it was 1980 - holy shit. Inoki wins the match with a suplex, and it's a deserved won. No one really deserved to lose, but Inoki did deserve to win. He had a response to everything Hansen through at him, and in the end, was a little too much and unpredictable for Hansen.
Stan Hansen is the fucking man. Inoki as well.
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